Things Are Not Always As They Seem
by Myra109
Summary: Amelia gets stuck in a time loop. She wakes up on the day they went to camp and lives until Meg dies before it repeats. She only has nine chances to get it right or she's stuck in the time loop forever. Along the way, she will discover that not everything is as it seems. AU, M for a reason, girlxgirl, rape, violence


_This is the longest one shot I have ever written, so forgive any spelling or grammar errors. The longer a piece is, the harder it is of edit it._

 _Prompt from SpencerandHanna._

 ** _Disclaimer: I own nothing_**

 ** _WARNINGS: GIRLXGIRL, RAPE, BULLYING, VIOLENCE. LANGUAGE, DARK! Lisa lovers, do not read this._**

* * *

Amelia sat bolt up right in her bed, gasping and holding her head, Meg's scream still ringing in her ears.

"Lisa!" she called.

No response.

Amelia glanced around, and she was shocked when she found herself in her own bedroom at home, not at camp.

But how?

Amelia grabbed her phone and hit the power button, watching as the screen lit up with a picture of her and Meg before Meg had turned sour on her.

June 10th. The day they left for camp.

"Amelia, time to get up!" her mom called from downstairs.

Had it all been a dream? Amelia wasn't nearly sick enough to dream up something like that, but… what other explanation was there?

Amelia took a deep breath before tossing off her covers and going to shower.

* * *

Amelia sat on the bus, still feeling sluggish and disoriented after her nightmare.

Lisa walked onto the bus, and Amelia gestured for Lisa to sit beside her, but Lisa chose the next seat over.

Wait. If the entire thing had been a nightmare, how did Amelia know Lisa? Before she could question it, Meg sat beside her.

"I can't believe we got shipped off to Camp Lame-o again," Meg complained.

"It's actually kind of fun," Amelia told her.

Meg rolled her eyes. "Are you kidding me?"

"Why are you even here?"

"My parents have to work," Meg spat, bitterly. "Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if we didn't have to deal with the lame new kids."

"I like meeting the new campers," Amelia disagreed. " _They_ seem nice."

Amelia stood and maneuvered around Meg to sit beside Lisa.

"I'm Amelia," the said girl grinned.

"Lisa," the new camper smiled, shaking Amelia's hand.

Amelia didn't notice Meg's hurt expression, which was quickly concealed by a haughty look and the uncaring roll of her eyes.

Looking at Meg with her mask in place, you'd never know.

* * *

Justine pointed to each kid and listed off a cabin.

"We're both crickets!" Amelia exclaimed to Lisa before Meg appeared behind her. "Oh, you, too," Amelia said, some excitement going out of her.

It wasn't that Amelia didn't like Meg. She didn't like the _new version_ of Meg, this mean, bitter girl. She didn't know what brought the change on, but she didn't like it.

* * *

"Pick a bunk!" Justine announced, gesturing to the room with her arms, and girls shoved past her in order to get a bunk first.

Amelia set her bags on a bunk, but when she looked up, she saw Lisa prepare to set her bags on the bunk beside Amelia's before Meg appeared seemingly out of no where and sat on the bunk.

"Sorry, already taken," Meg said.

Lisa rolled her eyes before placing her bags on the top bunk.

* * *

"On the first day of camp, we make… these," Justine declared, presenting a ring with strings filling the middle, criss crossing each other; a small bead was tied into the center.

"They kind of look like spider webs!" Lisa exclaimed.

"They're dream catchers," Amelia told the new camper.

"Yes," Justine confirmed. "They're called dream catchers because they catch all of your bad dreams, so when you wake up in the morning, all of your bad dreams have disappeared," Justine explained in a voice that was meant to make this less-than-interesting activity seem more exciting.

"After you've woven the string around, you're going the add the bead," Justine instructed. "The bead is, of course, the _spider_."

"This is so lame," Meg muttered.

Justine gave her an annoyed look before masking it with a bright grin.

"Get started!" she told her crickets.

Lisa began her's right away, and within minutes, she was finished.

Amelia, meanwhile, struggled to even cut the string.

"Lisa, you're a natural! Why don't you help the other girls?"

Lisa smiled at the councilor and turned to the brunette beside her to help the girl create her Dream Catcher.

* * *

Amelia was awakened by a shout.

"Ahh!" Meg shouted, startling Lisa and making the girl scream twice as loud.

The campers sat up, and Justine rolled out of bed.

"Don't fall asleep, or the Dream Catcher might get you," Meg laughed.

"Meg, why would you tell her that story?" Justine snapped.

"Justine, is that story true?" Lisa choked out.

"What do you think?" Justine sighed. "You don't believe in the boogeyman, do you?"

"Justine, are you saying that a camper didn't die here?" Meg asked.

"Look," Justine told them, "that was a really long time ago. Way before any of us were even born. Besides, you girls have your Dream Catchers, right?"

The girls nodded.

"Good. Go to sleep, okay? Goodnight," the councilor said before heading to her own bunk.

"Night, Justine," Lisa called.

"Sweet dreams," Meg mocked before laying back in her bunk and drifting off to sleep.

* * *

 _Amelia couldn't move. She rustled around, but she could barely wiggle a finger, much less stand up._

 _She recognized the rocky floor beneath her back. The cave. Her and Meg had hid from the councilor in here the previous summer._

 _Something brushed against her face, and she glanced up._

 _He was hideous. His face was pasty white, and his eyes were a glazed over kind of silver, almost like a blind person. His breath smelled like three year old garbage. He lumbered on uneven legs, almost like a spider, expect his size was a hundred times that of the average spider._

* * *

Amelia awoke up with a gasp.

She was sweaty and her clothes stuck to her, due to the perspiration that lathered her entire body. Her heart was beating faster than a cheetah can run.

She'd experienced the same dream in her nightmare the night before, the one about Meg dying.

This was getting too intense for her. It would be for anyone.

* * *

"I didn't sleep good at all last night," Lisa confessed to Amelia. "I had the creepiest dream."

"Me, too. I had the worst nightmare," Amelia agreed.

Meg shoved herself between the two girls and continued walking, the leaves crunching under her stomping feet.

"Excuse you?" Amelia shouted.

"What is with Meg?" Lisa muttered.

"We used to be friends, but then she turned into a jerk," Amelia replied, shortly.

The girls took another a few steps before Amelia suddenly stopped in her tracks.

"What's wrong, Amelia?" Lisa asked.

Meg turned around from where she was standing just ahead of them.

Amelia took a shaky breath. "This place was in my nightmare."

"Ooh, _scary_ ," Meg mocked.

Amelia slowly turned around and gazed at a nearby cave in apprehension.

"I was in that cave," she murmured. "I couldn't move. I felt something brush against my face, so I looked up. He was hideous. His breath was foul, and he moved like a giant spider."

Amelia finally broke out of her trance and shifted her gaze to Lisa.

" _Hello?"_ Meg called. "We walk by this cave every summer. Remember, last summer, we hid from the councilor in there?"

She was ignored.

Lisa said. "Amelia, the same thing happened in my nightmare."

Meg huffed and continued walking.

"There was this evil spider guy," Lisa added.

* * *

Later that night, Meg came into the cabin after brushing her teeth and sat on her bunk.

Amelia and Lisa sat on their bed, holding their broken dream catchers.

"Maybe it's just a coincidence," Lisa whispered.

"Guess the Dream Catchers don't work?" Meg asked.

"You cut them!" Lisa snapped.

Meg looked offended. "I did not."

"What's going on?" Justine asked as she walked back there.

"Meg broke our Dream Catchers!" Lisa told her.

Justine's eyes widened before she turned to glare at Meg.

"Meg, kitchen duty for three days."

"But I didn't even touch them!" Meg yelled.

Lisa gave her an angry, disgusted look, and Amelia rolled her eyes, thinking _yeah, right._

* * *

LATER THAT NIGHT…

"Amelia?" Lisa hissed, and Amelia rolled over in her bunk.

"I can't fall asleep," Lisa muttered.

"Me neither," Amelia agreed.

"What if _he_ comes back?" Lisa asked.

"Shh!" Meg hissed.

Lisa got out of bed and came down to sit beside Amelia.

"What do we do?" Amelia asked.

"My mom never lets me stay up all night," Lisa proposed.

Amelia smiled, but only one thought crossed her mind:

This is becoming more than déjà vu.

* * *

The sun filtered through the window, shining upon an exhausted Amelia and a yawning Lisa.

"You don't look so good," Amelia laughed.

"You, either," Lisa chuckled.

"How long do you two think you can go without sleeping?" Meg asked in a mocking tone. "Maybe I should tell Justine."

"No!" the two girls exclaimed.

Before any of the girls could continue, the door burst open, and Justine walked in.

"Fun day ahead, girls!" she called. "Twenty mile canoe trip!"

Amelia and Lisa groaned, quietly.

"Hey, Justine," Meg said. "Did you know that Lisa and Amelia…"

The other girls flinched in anticipation, even though Amelia already knew what would happen.

"-want to be first boat?" Meg finished.

Justine looked both surprised and delighted.

"All right. Up you get then! You two can lead the way," Justine said before yelling instructions to the other girls.

Amelia stood and exited the cabin after Meg and a few other campers. Lisa followed about fifteen seconds later.

* * *

That night, all of the cabins sat around the camp fire, singing camp fire sings and having a good time, but Lisa and Amelia felt ready to pass out or get sick. Or both.

"Just one more?" a girl with brown hair in pigtails begged as Justine finished the camp fire song.

"Yeah, Justine!" Meg called, watching Lisa sigh and lean her head on Amelia's shoulder. "Just one more."

"It's nice to see you getting into the spirit of things, Meg," Justine smiled. "I know."

She strummed a cord on the guitar.

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider!_

"Come on, guys," she interrupted herself. "You have to sing!"

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider_

 _That wiggled and wiggled and tickled inside her_

 _Swallowed a spider to catch the fly_

 _I don't know why she swallowed a fly_

 _Perhaps she'll die_

Lisa suddenly screamed, causing Amelia to jump, and Justine ran over to the new camper, who had fallen asleep sitting up.

"Lisa! Wake up!" Justine yelled as she shook Lisa's shoulders. "Go get help," she told another girl.

Lisa mumbled as she opened her eyes, and she raised her fingers to her lips and tugged on the object.

"Is that a spider web?" one girl asked as Lisa pulled out a silky strand.

"How did she get it in her mouth?" another muttered.

"Lisa, you fell asleep sitting up," Justine explained.

"He was in my nightmare," Lisa murmured.

"Enough. There is no such thing as the boogeyman," Justine stated, firmly. "That's it; no more scary stories. Everyone, go to bed. Get your stuff."

The crowd dispersed, and Amelia put a hand on Lisa's shoulder.

"It's okay," Amelia said, although she wasn't sure who she was trying to convince: Lisa or herself.

"Amelia, he was in my nightmare. Things from the nightmare are actually happening," Lisa stammered, fear coloring her voice, as she ripped up her sleeve to display the claw marks.

"I don't want to listen to this all night," Meg snapped. "I am going to find somewhere quiet to sleep."

She started to walk away, and she called over her shoulder, "I'll be in the Mess Hall."

"Amelia, if we sleep, he can hurt us," Lisa said, voice quivering. "I'm setting an alarm. We can't go to sleep!"

Amelia barely registered Lisa's words. She was too busy focusing on Meg's retreating back, remembering her nightmare.

It wasn't real.

Somehow, Amelia couldn't convince herself.

* * *

"I packed the soda," Lisa murmured, careful not to wake the others.

"My mom packed a ton of chocolate," Amelia added.

Amelia took a sip of her soda and nearly did a spit take.

"Just chug it, okay?" Lisa suggested before the two girls downed as much soda as they could before coughing and laughing.

Meanwhile, Meg was unrolling her sleeping bag in the Mess Hall.

* * *

Amelia and Lisa both had their knees pulled to their chests, rocking back and forth with wild eyes.

"I feel like my hair's standing on end," Amelia murmured.

"Me, too," Lisa whispered. "And I have to go to the bathroom."

"I'll be right here when you get back," Amelia pointed out.

Lisa hesitated. "All right."

She stood and watched as Amelia scampered back against the wall, watching the entire room for any sign of a threat.

Lisa grabbed her flashlight and switched it on; she made it to the door before turning back to Amelia.

"Don't go to sleep, okay?" Lisa told her.

"I'm way too wired to even think about sleeping," Amelia scoffed.

Lisa nodded and stumbled around in the darkness, looking over her shoulder and searching every corner, as she approached the bathroom.

She pushed open the door to the ladies room and watched as the light flickered to life, turning on and off several times before finally staying on.

* * *

Amelia lied down in her sleeping bag and tried to keep her eyes pried open.

They zeroed in on Meg's broken Dream Catcher, and she remembered… she remembered… she was too tired to even finish the thought.

By the time Amelia realized her eye lids were closing, she was already sleep.

* * *

Amelia opened her eyes and found herself sitting in the silky, sticky spider Web. She could hear the skittling of spider legs nearby, and she froze up with fear. She couldn't move, and he was nearby. She'd never make it out of here.

"Lisa!" she screamed before surprising herself when she yelled one more word.

"Meg!"

* * *

It seemed like years before Lisa appeared at her side.

"Lisa!" she cried.

Lisa hugged her before grabbing Amelia's hand.

"Let's get out of here!" Lisa hissed.

Amelia stumbled to her feet, but when she tried to take a step, she couldn't.

"I'm stuck!" she exclaimed, panic lacing her voice.

Suddenly, Lisa couldn't move her feet either, and when she tried, she became unbalanced and fell to the spider web. Lisa tried to get up, but her entire body was now glued to the web.

Amelia kneeled over to try and help her, but she stumbled and fell. Now, they were both stuck to the spider web.

Meg appeared.

"Meg!" Amelia yelled.

"Meg, help us!" Lisa sobbed.

Meg stared at Lisa in hatred, but Amelia could've sworn Meg glanced at Amelia in sympathy.

Meg grabbed the flashlight. "I'm an only child," she explained. "I don't like sharing."

Meg went to take a step, but the spider webs had captured the soles of her shoes, and she fell to land beside the other girls.

The Dream Catcher appeared and lumbered closer.

The girls screamed at the top of their lungs, and their shouts were interrupted by…

Beep, beep, beep.

"The alarm!" Lisa shouted.

It cursed.

"Thank goodness. We can wake up!" Meg yelled.

Amelia paled even more. "Not you! Remember? You didn't want to be woken up. You're still dreaming!"

Amelia and Lisa vanished, but not before Amelia heard Meg let loose one more awful scream.

* * *

Amelia sat bolt up right in bed, holding her forehead, which was slick with sweat. She gasped for air, Meg's dying scream ringing in her ears.

Amelia glanced around and found herself in her own bed and in her own house.

Amelia quickly turned on her phone.

June 10th.

* * *

It didn't take Amelia long to realize she was stuck in a time loop, like in some of the stories she'd read.

Maybe she could prevent the entire Dream Catcher fiasco (Amelia could think of a hundred other ways to describe it, but she chose that to prevent flashbacks) from ever happening. That way, Meg would never die, and Amelia and Lisa wouldn't only be left with the shreds of their shattered sanity.

Amelia sat on the bus, still feeling sluggish and disoriented after the past attempt.

Lisa walked onto the bus, and Amelia gestured for Lisa to sit beside her, but Lisa chose the next seat over.

Before Amelia could move to sit beside Lisa, Meg sat beside her.

"I can't believe we got shipped off to Camp Lame-o again," Meg complained.

"It's actually kind of fun," Amelia told her.

Meg rolled her eyes. "Are you kidding me?"

"Why are you even here?"

"My parents have to work," Meg spat, bitterly. "Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if we didn't have to deal with the lame new kids."

"I like meeting the new campers," Amelia disagreed. " _They_ seem nice."

Amelia stood and maneuvered around Meg to sit beside Lisa.

"I'm Amelia," the said girl grinned.

"Lisa," the new camper smiled, shaking Amelia's hand.

Amelia didn't notice Meg's hurt expression, which was quickly concealed by a haughty look and the uncaring roll of her eyes.

Looking at Meg with her mask in place, you'd never know.

* * *

Justine pointed to each kid and listed off a cabin.

"We're both crickets!" Amelia exclaimed to Lisa before Meg appeared behind her. "Oh, you, too," Amelia said, some excitement going out of her.

* * *

"Pick a bunk!" Justine announced, gesturing to the room with her arms, and girls shoved past her in order to get a bunk first.

Amelia set her bags on a bunk, but when she looked up, she saw Lisa prepare to set her bags on the bunk beside Amelia's before Meg appeared seemingly out of no where and sat on the bunk.

"Sorry, already taken," Meg said.

Lisa rolled her eyes before placing her bags on the top bunk.

* * *

"One the first day of camp, we make… these," Justine declared, presenting a ring with strings filling the middle, criss crossing each other; a small bead was tied into the center.

"They kind of look like spider webs!" Lisa exclaimed.

"They're dream catchers," Amelia told the new camper.

"Yes," Justine confirmed. "They're called dream catchers because they catch all of your bad dreams, so when you wake up in the morning, all of your bad dreams have disappeared," Justine explained in a voice that was meant to make this less-than-interesting activity seem more exciting.

"After you've woven the string around, you're going the add the bead," Justine instructed. "The bead is, of course, the _spider_."

"This is so lame," Meg muttered.

Justine gave her an annoyed look before masking it with a bright grin.

"Get started!" she told her crickets.

Lisa began her's right away, and within minutes, she was finished.

Amelia, meanwhile, struggled to even cut the string.

"Lisa, you're a natural! Why don't you help the other girls?"

Lisa smiled at the councilor and turned to the brunette beside her to help the girl create her Dream Catcher.

* * *

Amelia watched her Dream Catcher closely that night. She didn't sleep as she gazed at the creation, moonlight glinted across the bead.

The sun rose, and Amelia and Lisa's Dream Catchers were safe.

* * *

Amelia came back from breakfast to find her Dream Catcher cut, as well as Lisa's and Meg's.

What?! Meg hadn't left breakfast at all. Not even to use the bathroom. Amelia had hardly taken her eyes off of her the entire time. She hadn't left her chair at all.

Three or four kids had left to use the bathroom. There was Lisa, Susan from the Hare Cabin, Lucas from the Bear cabin, and Alex from Beaver Cabin. Those were the only people who had left.

Lucas didn't particularly like Amelia or Meg. Maybe it was him? Maybe he'd decided to cut Lisa's for the fun of it. It was a stretch, but it was possible.

Either way, their dream catchers were broken, and the Dream Catcher could get to them now.

* * *

THAT NIGHT…

Amelia didn't dare sleep knowing that the Dream Catcher was waiting for her in her dreams. She couldn't tell Lisa about him or the time loop. She couldn't tell anyone. They'd think she was crazy.

Therefore. Amelia waited for Lisa to whimper before sitting up and shaking the girl awake.

Lisa's eyes shot open. "What? Amelia?"

"Are you okay? You were crying in your sleep."

Lisa explained her nightmare to Amelia, and Amelia rattled off a description on the nightmare she'd had about the Dream Catcher (she hadn't slept, so she hadn't had it this time, but she'd had it the past two times she'd lived through this).

"What do we do?" Amelia asked.

Lisa smiled and climbed down the ladder to sit beside Amelia on her bunk.

"My mom never let's me stay up all night."

* * *

The sun filtered through the window, shining upon an exhausted Amelia and a yawning Lisa.

"You don't look so good," Amelia laughed.

"You, either," Lisa chuckled.

"How long do you two think you can go without sleeping?" Meg asked in a mocking tone. "Maybe I should tell Justine."

"No!" the two girls exclaimed.

Before any of the girls could continue, the door burst open, and Justine walked in.

"Fun day ahead, girls!" she called. "Twenty mile canoe trip!"

Amelia and Lisa groaned, quietly.

"Hey, Justine," Meg said. "Did you know that Lisa and Amelia…"

The other girls flinched in anticipation, even though Amelia already knew what would happen.

"-want to be first boat?" Meg finished.

Justine looked both surprised and delighted.

"All right. Up you get then! You two can lead the way," Justine said before yelling instructions to the other girls.

Amelia stood and exited the cabin after a few other campers. Lisa and Meg followed about fifteen seconds later.

Amelia didn't notice Lisa's smirk or Meg's pale face.

* * *

That night, all of the cabins sat around the camp fire, singing camp fire sings and having a good time, but Lisa and Amelia felt ready to pass out or get sick. Or both.

"Just one more?" a girl with brown hair in pigtails begged as Justine finished the camp fire song.

"Yeah, Justine!" Meg called, watching Lisa sigh and lean her head on Amelia's shoulder. "Just one more."

"It's nice to see you getting into the spirit of things, Meg," Justine smiled. "I know."

She strummed a cord on the guitar.

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider!_

"Come on, guys," she interrupted herself. "You have to sing!"

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider_

 _That wiggled and wiggled and tickled inside her_

 _Swallowed a spider to catch the fly_

 _I don't know why she swallowed a fly_

 _Perhaps she'll die_

Lisa suddenly screamed, causing Amelia to jump (despite expecting it), and Justine ran over to the new camper, who had fallen asleep sitting up.

"Lisa! Wake up!" Justine yelled as she shook Lisa's shoulders. "Go get help," she told another girl.

Lisa mumbled as she opened her eyes, and she raised her fingers to her lips and tugged on the object.

"Is that a spider web?" one girl asked as Lisa pulled out a silky strand.

"How did she get it in her mouth?" another muttered.

"Lisa, you fell asleep sitting up," Justine explained.

"He was in my nightmare," Lisa murmured.

"Enough. There is no such thing as the boogeyman," Justine stated, firmly. "That's it; no more scary stories. Everyone, go to bed. Get your stuff."

The crowd dispersed, and Amelia put a hand on Lisa's shoulder.

"It's okay," Amelia said, although she wasn't sure who she was trying to convince: Lisa or herself.

"Amelia, he was in my nightmare. Things from the nightmare are actually happening," Lisa stammered, fear coloring her voice, as she ripped up her sleeve to display the claw marks.

"I don't want to listen to this all night," Meg snapped. "I'm sleeping in the Mess hall."

"Wait," Amelia cried. "Meg… do you want to stay up with us all night?"

Meg blinked. "Really?"

"Really?" Lisa repeated.

Amelia nodded. "Really."

Meg blinked again. "Sure."

* * *

"I packed the soda," Lisa murmured, careful not to wake the others.

"My mom packed a ton of chocolate," Amelia added.

Amelia took a sip of her soda and nearly did a spit take.

"Just chug it, okay?" Lisa suggested before the two girls downed as much soda as they could before coughing and laughing.

Meg sat beside them, not speaking, as she sipped her own soda.

* * *

Amelia and Lisa both had their knees pulled to their chests, rocking back and forth with wild eyes. Meg was oddly quiet and calm about this whole thing.

"I feel like my hair's standing on end," Lisa murmured.

"Me, too," Amelia whispered. "And I have to go to the bathroom."

It was weird. It was as though their roles had been reversed.

"I'll be right here when you get back," Lisa pointed out.

Amelia hesitated. "All right."

She stood and watched as Lisa scampered back against the wall, watching the entire room for any sign of a threat. Meg was shaking now.

Amelia grabbed her flashlight and switched it on; she made it to the door before turning back to the two girls.

"Don't go to sleep, okay?" Amelia told them.

"I'm way too wired to even _think_ about sleeping," Lisa scoffed.

Amelia nodded and stumbled around in the darkness, looking over her shoulder and searching every corner, as she approached the bathroom.

She pushed open the door to the ladies room and watched as the light flickered to life, turning on and off several times before finally staying on.

* * *

Amelia used the bathroom and washed her hands; she went to get some paper towels, and her flashlight clattered to the floor.

She mentally cursed and knelt down to grab it; she picked it up and placed it on the counter before drying her hands.

She picked up the flashlight and walked to the door, turning off the light as she exited the bathroom.

A screech scratched against the insides of her ears.

He was there. His white face got so close to her's, she could see her reflection in his razor sharp teeth. His gray eyes bored into her, and his face stretched into a smile.

Amelia screamed and doubled back several steps before breaking into a sprint.

Amelia raced into the cabin and found Lisa and Meg both asleep. Lisa was even snoring, and the Dream Catcher was leaning over them.

Amelia ran for the woods, where she knew they'd be in the cave.

"Amelia!" Lisa's voice screamed, and Amelia filled it.

"Lia!" Meg shouted, using the nickname she'd given Amelia the summer they'd met.

Amelia dashed into the cave, tripping over the spider Web before she found both girls.

"Come on," she ordered, not wasting any time.

The inevitable occurred. Lisa's foot got stuck.

Amelia tugged on Lisa's leg, but that only resulted in both girls losing their balance, bringing Meg with them.

The Dream Catcher appeared and lumbered closer.

The girls screamed at the top of their lungs, and their shouts were interrupted by…

Beep, beep, beep.

"The alarm!" Lisa shouted.

It cursed.

"Thank goodness. We can wake up!" Meg yelled.

Amelia laughed. "Yes!"

"Wait!" Lisa yelled. "Meg can't wake up! She's not asleep; she's unconscious." (By this, I mean she's been knocked out)

"What?" Amelia said in confusion.

Meg's eyes widened. She obviously knew what Lisa was talking about, but no one got the time to explain.

Amelia and Lisa vanished, but not before Amelia heard Meg let loose one more awful scream.

* * *

Amelia sat bolt up right in bed, holding her forehead, which was slick with sweat. She gasped for air, Meg's dying scream ringing in her ears.

What had Lisa meant by saying Meg was unconscious? Either way, Amelia had failed. She didn't know how many chances she had, but she had to hurry and save Meg.

The question was: how?

* * *

Amelia sat on the bus, still feeling sluggish and disoriented after what happened.

Lisa walked onto the bus, and Amelia gestured for Lisa to sit beside her, but Lisa chose the next seat over.

Meg sat beside Amelia.

"I can't believe we got shipped off to Camp Lame-o again," Meg complained.

"It's actually kind of fun," Amelia told her.

Meg rolled her eyes. "Are you kidding me?"

"Why are you even here?"

"My parents have to work," Meg spat, bitterly. "Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if we didn't have to deal with the lame new kids."

"I like meeting the new campers," Amelia disagreed. "They seem nice."

Just because Meg died didn't mean Amelia had to like her anymore than she did. It just meant she had to find a way to save her, and they could move on with their lives.

Amelia stood and maneuvered around Meg to sit beside Lisa.

"I'm Amelia," the said girl grinned.

"Lisa," the new camper smiled, shaking Amelia's hand.

Amelia didn't notice Meg's hurt expression, which was quickly concealed by a haughty look and the uncaring roll of her eyes.

Looking at Meg with her mask in place, you'd never know.

* * *

Justine pointed to each kid and listed off a cabin.

"We're both crickets!" Amelia exclaimed to Lisa before Meg appeared behind her. "Oh, you, too," Amelia said, some excitement going out of her.

* * *

"Pick a bunk!" Justine announced, gesturing to the room with her arms, and girls shoved past her in order to get a bunk first.

Amelia set her bags on a bunk, but when she looked up, she saw Lisa prepare to set her bags on the bunk beside Amelia's before Meg appeared seemingly out of no where and sat on the bunk.

"Sorry, already taken," Meg said.

Lisa rolled her eyes before placing her bags on the top bunk.

* * *

"One the first day of camp, we make… these," Justine declared, presenting a ring with strings filling the middle, criss crossing each other; a small bead was tied into the center.

"They kind of look like spider webs!" Lisa exclaimed.

"They're dream catchers," Amelia told the new camper.

"Yes," Justine confirmed. "They're called dream catchers because they catch all of your bad dreams, so when you wake up in the morning, all of your bad dreams have disappeared," Justine explained in a voice that was meant to make this less-than-interesting activity seem more exciting.

"After you've woven the string around, you're going the add the bead," Justine instructed. "The bead is, of course, the spider."

"This is so lame," Meg muttered.

Justine gave her an annoyed look before masking it with a bright grin.

"Get started!" she told her crickets.

Lisa began her's right away, and within minutes, she was finished.

Amelia, meanwhile, struggled to even cut the string.

"Lisa, you're a natural! Why don't you help the other girls?"

Lisa smiled at the councilor and turned to the brunette beside her to help the girl create her Dream Catcher.

* * *

Amelia just couldn't put it together. She'd talked to Lucas at breakfast to prevent him from leaving, and the Dream Catchers were still broken when she returned to the cabin.

Obviously, she couldn't prevent the entire incident. She simply had to prevent Meg's death, not the Dream Catcher all together. Who knows? Maybe the Dream Catcher was breaking the Dream catchers, and Amelia was not willing to tangle with that guy more than she had to.

* * *

THAT NIGHT…

Amelia didn't dare sleep knowing that the Dream Catcher was waiting for her in her dreams. Therefore, she laid in her bunk, watching every shadow that dared to move.

Amelia waited for Lisa to whimper before sitting up and shaking the girl awake.

Lisa's eyes shot open. "What? Amelia?"

"Are you okay? You were crying in your sleep."

Lisa explained her nightmare to Amelia, and Amelia rattled off a description on the nightmare she'd had about the Dream Catcher (she hadn't slept, so she hadn't had it this time, but she'd had it the past few times she'd lived through this).

"What do we do?" Amelia asked.

Lisa smiled and climbed down the ladder to sit beside Amelia on her bunk.

"My mom never let's me stay up all night."

* * *

The sun filtered through the window, shining upon an exhausted Amelia and a yawning Lisa.

"You don't look so good," Amelia laughed.

"You, either," Lisa chuckled.

"How long do you two think you can go without sleeping?" Meg asked in a mocking tone. "Maybe I should tell Justine."

"No!" the two girls exclaimed.

Before any of the girls could continue, the door burst open, and Justine walked in.

"Fun day ahead, girls!" she called. "Twenty mile canoe trip!"

Amelia and Lisa groaned, quietly.

"Hey, Justine," Meg said. "Did you know that Lisa and Amelia…"

The other girls flinched in anticipation, even though Amelia already knew what would happen.

"-want to be first boat?" Meg finished.

Justine looked both surprised and delighted.

"All right. Up you get then! You two can lead the way," Justine said before yelling instructions to the other girls.

Amelia stood and exited the cabin after Meg and a few other campers. Lisa followed about fifteen seconds later.

* * *

That night, all of the cabins sat around the camp fire, singing camp fire sings and having a good time, but Lisa and Amelia felt ready to pass out or get sick. Or both.

"Just one more?" a girl with brown hair in pigtails begged as Justine finished the camp fire song.

"Yeah, Justine!" Meg called, watching Lisa sigh and lean her head on Amelia's shoulder. "Just one more."

"It's nice to see you getting into the spirit of things, Meg," Justine smiled. "I know."

She strummed a cord on the guitar.

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider!_

"Come on, guys," she interrupted herself. "You have to sing!"

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider_

 _That wiggled and wiggled and tickled inside her_

 _She wallowed a spider to catch the fly_

 _I don't know why she swallowed a fly_

 _Perhaps she'll die_

Lisa suddenly screamed, causing Amelia to jump (despite expecting it), and Justine ran over to the new camper, who had fallen asleep sitting up.

"Lisa! Wake up!" Justine yelled as she shook Lisa's shoulders. "Go get help," she told another girl.

Lisa mumbled as she opened her eyes, and she raised her fingers to her lips and tugged on the object.

"Is that a spider web?" one girl asked as Lisa pulled out a silky strand.

"How did she get it in her mouth?" another muttered.

"Lisa, you fell asleep sitting up," Justine explained.

"He was in my nightmare," Lisa murmured.

"Enough. There is no such thing as the boogeyman," Justine stated, firmly. "That's it; no more scary stories. Everyone, go to bed. Get your stuff."

The crowd dispersed, and Amelia put a hand on Lisa's shoulder.

"It's okay," Amelia said, although she wasn't sure who she was trying to convince: Lisa or herself.

"Amelia, he was in my nightmare. Things from the nightmare are actually happening," Lisa stammered, fear coloring her voice, as she ripped up her sleeve to display the claw marks.

"I don't want to listen to this all night," Meg snapped. "I'm sleeping in the Mess hall."

"Wait," Amelia cried. "Meg… do you want to stay up with us all night?"

Meg blinked. "Really?"

"Really?" Lisa repeated.

Amelia nodded. "Really."

Meg blinked again. "Sure."

* * *

Amelia told Lisa and Meg she would catch up before darting across the grounds and sneaking into the kitchens.

Amelia unzipped her jacket and spotted an inner pocket she could use.

She grabbed a knife from the knife block and slid it into the pocket before exiting the mess hall.

* * *

"I packed the soda," Lisa murmured, careful not to wake the others.

"My mom packed a ton of chocolate," Amelia added.

Amelia took a sip of her soda and nearly did a spit take.

"Just chug it, okay?" Lisa suggested before the two girls downed as much soda as they could before coughing and laughing.

Meg sat beside them, not speaking, as she sipped her own soda.

* * *

Amelia and Lisa both had their knees pulled to their chests, rocking back and forth with wild eyes. Meg was oddly quiet and calm about this whole thing.

"I feel like my hair's standing on end," Lisa murmured.

"Me, too," Amelia whispered. "And I have to go to the bathroom."

It was weird. It was as though their roles had been reversed.

"I'll be right here when you get back," Lisa pointed out.

Amelia hesitated. "All right."

She stood and watched as Lisa scampered back against the wall, watching the entire room for any sign of a threat. Meg was shaking now.

Amelia grabbed her flashlight and switched it on; she made it to the door before turning back to the two girls.

"Don't go to sleep, okay?" Amelia told her.

"I'm way too wired to even think about sleeping," Lisa scoffed.

Amelia nodded and stumbled around in the darkness, looking over her shoulder and searching every corner, as she approached the bathroom.

She pushed open the door to the ladies room and watched as the light flickered to life, turning on and off several times before finally staying on.

* * *

Amelia used the bathroom and washed her hands; she went to get some paper towels, and her flashlight clattered to the floor.

She mentally cursed and knelt down to grab it; she picked it up and placed it on the counter before drying her hands.

She picked up the flashlight and walked to the door, turning off the light as she exited the bathroom.

A screech scratched against the insides of her ears.

He was there. His white face got so close to her's, she could see her reflection in his razor sharp teeth. His gray eyes bored into her, and his face stretched into a smile.

Amelia screamed and doubled back several steps before breaking into a sprint.

Amelia raced into the cabin and found Lisa and Meg both asleep. Lisa was even snoring, and the Dream Catcher was leaning over them.

Amelia ran for the woods, where she knew they'd be in the cave.

"Amelia!" Lisa's voice screamed, and Amelia followed it.

"Lia!" Meg shouted, using the nickname she'd given Amelia the summer they'd met.

Amelia dashed into the cave, tripping over the spider Web before she found both girls.

"Come on," she ordered, not wasting any time.

The inevitable occurred. Lisa's foot got stuck.

Amelia tugged on Lisa's leg, but that only resulted in both girls losing their balance, bringing Meg with them.

The Dream Catcher appeared and lumbered closer.

The girls screamed at the top of their lungs, and their shouts were interrupted by…

Beep, beep, beep.

"The alarm!" Lisa shouted.

It cursed.

"Thank goodness. We can wake up!" Meg yelled.

Amelia laughed. "Yes!"

"Wait!" Lisa yelled. "Meg can't wake up! She's not asleep; she's unconscious."

The Dream Catcher cackled as he neared them, but he stopped laughing real quick when Amelia withdrew the knife from her pocket and thrust it into his chest (at least, she was pretty sure it was his chest).

The Dream Catcher started chuckling once more as he pulled the knife from his skin and the wound stitched itself back together.

"I am a part of the dream world," he whispered, smiling with his rotten, crooked teeth. "I cannot be killed here."

Amelia and Lisa vanished, but not before Amelia heard Meg let loose one more awful scream.

* * *

Amelia sat bolt up right in her own bed, and although she knew what she would see, she checked her phone.

June 10th.

Here we go again.

* * *

Amelia sat on the bus, still feeling sluggish and disoriented after what happened. Just like the last time. And the time before that. And the time before that.

Lisa walked onto the bus, and Amelia gestured for Lisa to sit beside her, but Lisa chose the next seat over.

Meg sat beside Amelia.

"I can't believe we got shipped off to Camp Lame-o again," Meg complained.

"It's actually kind of fun," Amelia told her.

Meg rolled her eyes. "Are you kidding me?"

"Why are you even here?"

"My parents have to work," Meg spat, bitterly. "Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if we didn't have to deal with the lame new kids."

"I like meeting the new campers," Amelia disagreed. " _They_ seem nice."

Amelia stood and maneuvered around Meg to sit beside Lisa.

"I'm Amelia," the said girl grinned.

"Lisa," the new camper smiled, shaking Amelia's hand.

Amelia didn't notice Meg's hurt expression, which was quickly concealed by a haughty look and the uncaring roll of her eyes.

Looking at Meg with her mask in place, you'd never know.

* * *

Justine pointed to each kid and listed off a cabin.

"We're both crickets!" Amelia exclaimed to Lisa before Meg appeared behind her. "Oh, you, too," Amelia said, some excitement going out of her.

* * *

"Pick a bunk!" Justine announced, gesturing to the room with her arms, and girls shoved past her in order to get a bunk first.

Amelia set her bags on a bunk, but when she looked up, she saw Lisa prepare to set her bags on the bunk beside Amelia's before Meg appeared seemingly out of no where and sat on the bunk.

"Sorry, already taken," Meg said.

Lisa rolled her eyes before placing her bags on the top bunk.

* * *

"One the first day of camp, we make… these," Justine declared, presenting a ring with strings filling the middle, criss crossing each other; a small bead was tied into the center.

"They kind of look like spider webs!" Lisa exclaimed.

"They're dream catchers," Amelia told the new camper.

"Yes," Justine confirmed. "They're called dream catchers because they catch all of your bad dreams, so when you wake up in the morning, all of your bad dreams have disappeared," Justine explained in a voice that was meant to make this less-than-interesting activity seem more exciting.

"After you've woven the string around, you're going the add the bead," Justine instructed. "The bead is, of course, the _spider_."

"This is so lame," Meg muttered.

Justine gave her an annoyed look before masking it with a bright grin.

"Get started!" she told her crickets.

Lisa began her's right away, and within minutes, she was finished.

Amelia, meanwhile, struggled to even cut the string.

"Lisa, you're a natural! Why don't you help the other girls?"

Lisa smiled at the councilor and turned to the brunette beside her to help the girl create her Dream Catcher.

* * *

THAT NIGHT…

Amelia didn't dare sleep knowing that the Dream Catcher was waiting for her in her dreams. Therefore, she laid in her bunk, watching every shadow that dared to move.

Amelia waited for Lisa to whimper before sitting up and shaking the girl awake.

Lisa's eyes shot open. "What? Amelia?"

"Are you okay? You were crying in your sleep."

Lisa explained her nightmare to Amelia, and Amelia rattled off a description on the nightmare she'd had about the Dream Catcher (she hadn't slept, so she hadn't had it this time, but she'd had it the past several times she'd lived through this).

"What do we do?" Amelia asked.

Lisa smiled and climbed down the ladder to sit beside Amelia on her bunk.

"My mom never let's me stay up all night."

* * *

The sun filtered through the window, shining upon an exhausted Amelia and a yawning Lisa.

"You don't look so good," Amelia laughed.

"You, either," Lisa chuckled.

"How long do you two think you can go without sleeping?" Meg asked in a mocking tone. "Maybe I should tell Justine."

"No!" the two girls exclaimed.

Before any of the girls could continue, the door burst open, and Justine walked in.

"Fun day ahead, girls!" she called. "Twenty mile canoe trip!"

Amelia and Lisa groaned, quietly.

"Hey, Justine," Meg said. "Did you know that Lisa and Amelia…"

The other girls flinched in anticipation, even though Amelia already knew what would happen.

"-want to be first boat?" Meg finished.

Justine looked both surprised and delighted.

"All right. Up you get then! You two can lead the way," Justine said before yelling instructions to the other girls.

Amelia stood and exited the cabin after Meg and a few other campers. Lisa followed about fifteen seconds later.

* * *

That night, all of the cabins sat around the camp fire, singing camp fire sings and having a good time, but Lisa and Amelia felt ready to pass out or get sick. Or both.

"Just one more?" a girl with brown hair in pigtails begged as Justine finished the camp fire song.

"Yeah, Justine!" Meg called, watching Lisa sigh and lean her head on Amelia's shoulder. "Just one more."

"It's nice to see you getting into the spirit of things, Meg," Justine smiled. "I know."

She strummed a cord on the guitar.

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider!_

"Come on, guys," she interrupted herself. "You have to sing!"

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider_

 _That wiggled and wiggled and tickled inside her_

 _She swallowed a spider to catch the fly_

 _I don't know why she swallowed a fly_

 _Perhaps she'll die_

Lisa suddenly screamed, causing Amelia to jump (despite expecting it), and Justine ran over to the new camper, who had fallen asleep sitting up.

"Lisa! Wake up!" Justine yelled as she shook Lisa's shoulders. "Go get help," she told another girl.

Lisa mumbled as she opened her eyes, and she raised her fingers to her lips and tugged on the object.

"Is that a spider web?" one girl asked as Lisa pulled out a silky strand.

"How did she get it in her mouth?" another muttered.

"Lisa, you fell asleep sitting up," Justine explained.

"He was in my nightmare," Lisa murmured.

"Enough. There is no such thing as the boogeyman," Justine stated, firmly. "That's it; no more scary stories. Everyone, go to bed. Get your stuff."

The crowd dispersed, and Amelia put a hand on Lisa's shoulder.

"It's okay," Amelia said, although she wasn't sure who she was trying to convince: Lisa or herself.

"Amelia, he was in my nightmare. Things from the nightmare are actually happening," Lisa stammered, fear coloring her voice, as she ripped up her sleeve to display the claw marks.

"I don't want to listen to this all night," Meg snapped. "I'm sleeping in the Mess hall."

"Wait," Amelia cried. "Meg… do you want to stay up with us all night?"

Meg blinked. "Really?"

"Really?" Lisa repeated.

Amelia nodded. "Really."

Meg blinked again. "Sure."

* * *

Amelia told Lisa and Meg she would catch up before darting across the grounds and sneaking into the main building (the campers often called it _Head Quarters_ ).

Amelia rifled through the supply closet and withdraw a small, white bottle of gasoline. She slipped it into her backpack, making sure to keep it far away from the lighter in the front pocket.

She couldn't kill the Dream Catcher, but she could distract it and buy them time.

After all, Amelia wouldn't be too concerned with her prey getting away if she was on fire. It may not kill him, but it would hurt.

* * *

"I packed the soda," Lisa murmured, careful not to wake the others.

"My mom packed a ton of chocolate," Amelia added.

Amelia took a sip of her soda and nearly did a spit take.

"Just chug it, okay?" Lisa suggested before the two girls downed as much soda as they could before coughing and laughing.

Meg sat beside them, not speaking, as she sipped her own soda.

* * *

Amelia and Lisa both had their knees pulled to their chests, rocking back and forth with wild eyes. Meg was oddly quiet and calm about this whole thing.

"I feel like my hair's standing on end," Lisa murmured.

"Me, too," Amelia whispered. "And I have to go to the bathroom."

"I'll be right here when you get back," Lisa pointed out.

Amelia hesitated. "All right."

She stood and watched as Lisa scampered back against the wall, watching the entire room for any sign of a threat. Meg was shaking now.

Amelia grabbed her flashlight and switched it on; she made it to the door before turning back to the two girls.

"Don't go to sleep, okay?" Amelia told them.

"I'm way too wired to even _think_ about sleeping," Lisa scoffed.

Amelia nodded and stumbled around in the darkness, looking over her shoulder and searching every corner, as she approached the bathroom.

She pushed open the door to the ladies room and watched as the light flickered to life, turning on and off several times before finally staying on.

* * *

Amelia used the bathroom and washed her hands; she went to get some paper towels, and her flashlight clattered to the floor.

She mentally cursed and knelt down to grab it; she picked it up and placed it on the counter before drying her hands.

She picked up the flashlight and walked to the door, turning off the light as she exited the bathroom.

A screech scratched against the insides of her ears.

He was there. His white face got so close to her's, she could see her reflection in his razor sharp teeth. His gray eyes bored into her, and his face stretched into a smile.

Despite expecting it, Amelia was still horrified.

Amelia screamed and doubled back several steps before breaking into a sprint.

Amelia raced into the cabin and found Lisa and Meg both asleep. Lisa was even snoring, and the Dream Catcher was leaning over them.

Amelia ran for the woods, where she knew they'd be in the cave.

"Amelia!" Lisa's voice screamed, and Amelia followed it.

"Lia!" Meg shouted, using the nickname she'd given Amelia the summer they'd met.

Amelia dashed into the cave, tripping over the spider Web before she found both girls.

"Come on," she ordered, not wasting any time.

The inevitable occurred. Lisa's foot got stuck.

Amelia tugged on Lisa's leg, but that only resulted in both girls losing their balance, bringing Meg with them.

The Dream Catcher appeared and lumbered closer.

The girls screamed at the top of their lungs, and their shouts were interrupted by…

Beep, beep, beep.

"The alarm!" Lisa shouted.

It cursed.

"Thank goodness. We can wake up!" Meg yelled.

Amelia laughed. "Yes!"

"Wait!" Lisa yelled. "Meg can't wake up! She's not asleep; she's unconscious."

Amelia ignored her and withdrew the gasoline (it was a small bottle, but it would be more than enough) from her backpack, which she'd made sure to keep with her at all times. Amelia sprayed the startled and puzzled Dream Catcher with the foul smelling, clear liquid.

"What was that supposed to do?" the Dream Catcher cackled.

"It's supposed to make _this_ … even more painful," Amelia smirked, withdrawing the lighter from her pocket and flicking open the cap to reveal the dancing flame.

Panic flashed in the Dream Catcher's eyes, and Amelia chucked the lighter at him, watching in absolute happiness as he screamed in pain and burst into flames.

* * *

Amelia and Lisa shot up in the bed, and Amelia rushed to kneel over Meg, shaking her.

"Meg, wake up!" she yelled, awakening the other girls in the cabin and Justine. "Meg!"

Nothing changed.

Meg let loose one more awful scream before her chest went still. The world spun around Amelia before vanishing entirely.

* * *

Amelia sat up in her own bed, breathing hard.

A paper rested on her nightstand, and Amelia picked it up.

 _You do not know who I am, nor do you need to. You have nine chances to make it right, or you will be stuck in the time loop forever. This is your fifth try. Do not waste your chances, Amelia._

Amelia blinked and the paper was blank, but she knew that she'd seen the words.

Nine chances. Or Amelia would be living a nightmare forever.

But no pressure.

* * *

Amelia sat on the bus, still feeling sluggish and disoriented after what happened. Just like the last time. And the time before that. And the time before that.

Lisa walked onto the bus, and Amelia gestured for Lisa to sit beside her, but Lisa chose the next seat over.

Meg sat beside Amelia.

"I can't believe we got shipped off to Camp Lame-o again," Meg complained.

"It's actually kind of fun," Amelia told her.

Meg rolled her eyes. "Are you kidding me?"

"Why are you even here?"

"My parents have to work," Meg spat, bitterly. "Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if we didn't have to deal with the lame new kids."

"I like meeting the new campers," Amelia disagreed. " _They_ seem nice."

Amelia stood and maneuvered around Meg to sit beside Lisa.

"I'm Amelia," the said girl grinned.

"Lisa," the new camper smiled, shaking Amelia's hand.

Amelia didn't notice Meg's hurt expression, which was quickly concealed by a haughty look and the uncaring roll of her eyes.

Looking at Meg with her mask in place, you'd never know.

* * *

Justine pointed to each kid and listed off a cabin.

"We're both crickets!" Amelia exclaimed to Lisa before Meg appeared behind her. "Oh, you, too," Amelia said, some excitement going out of her.

* * *

"Pick a bunk!" Justine announced, gesturing to the room with her arms, and girls shoved past her in order to get a bunk first.

Amelia set her bags on a bunk, but when she looked up, she saw Lisa prepare to set her bags on the bunk beside Amelia's before Meg appeared seemingly out of no where and sat on the bunk.

"Sorry, already taken," Meg said.

Lisa rolled her eyes before placing her bags on the top bunk.

* * *

"One the first day of camp, we make… these," Justine declared, presenting a ring with strings filling the middle, criss crossing each other; a small bead was tied into the center.

"They kind of look like spider webs!" Lisa exclaimed.

"They're dream catchers," Amelia told the new camper.

"Yes," Justine confirmed. "They're called dream catchers because they catch all of your bad dreams, so when you wake up in the morning, all of your bad dreams have disappeared," Justine explained in a voice that was meant to make this less-than-interesting activity seem more exciting.

"After you've woven the string around, you're going the add the bead," Justine instructed. "The bead is, of course, the _spider_."

"This is so lame," Meg muttered.

Justine gave her an annoyed look before masking it with a bright grin.

"Get started!" she told her crickets.

Lisa began her's right away, and within minutes, she was finished.

Amelia, meanwhile, struggled to even cut the string.

"Lisa, you're a natural! Why don't you help the other girls?"

Lisa smiled at the councilor and turned to the brunette beside her to help the girl create her Dream Catcher.

* * *

THAT NIGHT…

Amelia didn't dare sleep knowing that the Dream Catcher was waiting for her in her dreams. Therefore, she laid in her bunk, watching every shadow that dared to move.

Amelia waited for Lisa to whimper before sitting up and shaking the girl awake.

Lisa's eyes shot open. "What? Amelia?"

"Are you okay? You were crying in your sleep."

Lisa explained her nightmare to Amelia, and Amelia rattled off a description on the nightmare she'd had about the Dream Catcher (she hadn't slept, so she hadn't had it this time, but she'd had it the past few times she'd lived through this).

"What do we do?" Amelia asked.

Lisa smiled and climbed down the ladder to sit beside Amelia on her bunk.

"My mom never let's me stay up all night."

* * *

The sun filtered through the window, shining upon an exhausted Amelia and a yawning Lisa.

"You don't look so good," Amelia laughed.

"You, either," Lisa chuckled.

"How long do you two think you can go without sleeping?" Meg asked in a mocking tone. "Maybe I should tell Justine."

"No!" the two girls exclaimed.

Before any of the girls could continue, the door burst open, and Justine walked in.

"Fun day ahead, girls!" she called. "Twenty mile canoe trip!"

Amelia and Lisa groaned, quietly.

"Hey, Justine," Meg said. "Did you know that Lisa and Amelia…"

The other girls flinched in anticipation, even though Amelia already knew what would happen.

"-want to be first boat?" Meg finished.

Justine looked both surprised and delighted.

"All right. Up you get then! You two can lead the way," Justine said before yelling instructions to the other girls.

Amelia stood and exited the cabin after Meg and a few other campers. Lisa followed about fifteen seconds later.

* * *

That night, all of the cabins sat around the camp fire, singing camp fire sings and having a good time, but Lisa and Amelia felt ready to pass out or get sick. Or both.

"Just one more?" a girl with brown hair in pigtails begged as Justine finished the camp fire song.

"Yeah, Justine!" Meg called, watching Lisa sigh and lean her head on Amelia's shoulder. "Just one more."

"It's nice to see you getting into the spirit of things, Meg," Justine smiled. "I know."

She strummed a cord on the guitar.

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider!_

"Come on, guys," she interrupted herself. "You have to sing!"

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider_

 _That wiggled and wiggled and tickled inside her_

 _She swallowed a spider to catch the fly_

 _I don't know why she swallowed a fly_

 _Perhaps she'll die_

Lisa suddenly screamed, causing Amelia to jump (despite expecting it), and Justine ran over to the new camper, who had falling asleep sitting up.

"Lisa! Wake up!" Justine yelled as she shook Lisa's shoulders. "Go get help," she told another girl.

Lisa mumbled as she opened her eyes, and she raised her fingers to her lips and tugged on the object.

"Is that a spider web?" one girl asked as Lisa pulled out a silky strand.

"How did she get it in her mouth?" another muttered.

"Lisa, you fell asleep sitting up," Justine explained.

"He was in my nightmare," Lisa murmured.

"Enough. There is no such thing as the boogeyman," Justine stated, firmly. "That's it; no more scary stories. Everyone, go to bed. Get your stuff."

The crowd dispersed, and Amelia put a hand on Lisa's shoulder.

"It's okay," Amelia said, although she wasn't sure who she was trying to convince: Lisa or herself.

"Amelia, he was in my nightmare. Things from the nightmare are actually happening," Lisa stammered, fear coloring her voice, as she ripped up her sleeve to display the claw marks.

"I don't want to listen to this all night," Meg snapped. "I'm sleeping in the Mess hall."

"Wait," Amelia cried. "Meg… do you want to stay up with us all night?"

Meg blinked. "Really?"

"Really?" Lisa repeated.

Amelia nodded. "Really."

Meg blinked again. "Sure."

* * *

"I packed the soda," Lisa murmured, careful not to wake the others.

"My mom packed a ton of chocolate," Amelia added.

Amelia took a sip of her soda and nearly did a spit take.

"Just chug it, okay?" Lisa suggested before the two girls downed as much soda as they could before coughing and laughing.

Meg sat beside them, not speaking, as she sipped her own soda.

* * *

Amelia didn't dare leave Lisa and Meg this time. She sat on the bunk and ignored her aching bladder.

Amelia and Lisa rocked back and forth. Two sleepless nights and the sleep deprivation was taking its toll on them. Meg sat beside them. Even she was beginning to look nervous, despite not believing in the Dream Catcher (yet).

Amelia was so tired. Everything felt heavy: her limbs, her eyelids, her head.

She couldn't sleep, though! She coul…d…n't…

Amelia's thought slowed as her eyes closed against her will. The last thing she heard was Meg sobbing.

It must've been her imagination.

* * *

Amelia's eyes shot open, and she found herself sitting in the Dream Catcher's lair.

"MEG!" she screamed. "LISA!"

Nothing.

Amelia continued to scream, shouting the names of her friends, until finally footsteps sounded in the cave.

"Amelia!" Lisa called.

"Lisa!" Amelia shouted, and Meg and Lisa appeared.

Once again, the inevitable occurred. The three girls got stuck, and the Dream Catcher lumbered closer on his uneven legs.

The girls screamed at the top of their lungs, and their shouts were interrupted by…

Beep, beep, beep.

"The alarm!" Lisa shouted.

It cursed.

"Thank goodness. We can wake up!" Meg yelled.

Amelia laughed. "Yes!"

"Wait!" Lisa yelled. "Meg can't wake up! She's not asleep; she's unconscious."

Shit. Amelia had forgotten about that part.

The world spun around Amelia as she was once again thrown back in time.

Meg let loose one more awful scream before Amelia's world faded entirely.

* * *

Amelia sat up in her own bed in her own house.

This was her sixth try. She had four more tries, including this one.

Amelia was in way over her head here.

Amelia sighed before getting out of bed, ready to live June 10th for the seventh time.

* * *

Amelia sat on the bus, still feeling sluggish and disoriented after what happened. Just like the last time. And the time before that. And the time before that.

Lisa walked onto the bus, and Amelia gestured for Lisa to sit beside her, but Lisa chose the next seat over.

Meg sat beside Amelia.

"I can't believe we got shipped off to Camp Lame-o again," Meg complained.

"It's actually kind of fun," Amelia told her.

Meg rolled her eyes. "Are you kidding me?"

"Why are you even here?"

"My parents have to work," Meg spat, bitterly. "Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if we didn't have to deal with the lame new kids."

"I like meeting the new campers," Amelia disagreed. " _They_ seem nice."

Amelia stood and maneuvered around Meg to sit beside Lisa.

"I'm Amelia," the said girl grinned.

"Lisa," the new camper smiled, shaking Amelia's hand.

Amelia didn't notice Meg's hurt expression, which was quickly concealed by a haughty look and the uncaring roll of her eyes.

Looking at Meg with her mask in place, you'd never know.

* * *

Justine pointed to each kid and listed off a cabin.

"We're both crickets!" Amelia exclaimed to Lisa before Meg appeared behind her. "Oh, you, too," Amelia said, some excitement going out of her.

* * *

"Pick a bunk!" Justine announced, gesturing to the room with her arms, and girls shoved past her in order to get a bunk first.

Amelia set her bags on a bunk, but when she looked up, she saw Lisa prepare to set her bags on the bunk beside Amelia's before Meg appeared seemingly out of no where and sat on the bunk.

"Sorry, already taken," Meg said.

Lisa rolled her eyes before placing her bags on the top bunk.

* * *

"One the first day of camp, we make… these," Justine declared, presenting a ring with strings filling the middle, criss crossing each other; a small bead was tied into the center.

"They kind of look like spider webs!" Lisa exclaimed.

"They're dream catchers," Amelia told the new camper.

"Yes," Justine confirmed. "They're called dream catchers because they catch all of your bad dreams, so when you wake up in the morning, all of your bad dreams have disappeared," Justine explained in a voice that was meant to make this less-than-interesting activity seem more exciting.

"After you've woven the string around, you're going the add the bead," Justine instructed. "The bead is, of course, the _spider_."

"This is so lame," Meg muttered.

Justine gave her an annoyed look before masking it with a bright grin.

"Get started!" she told her crickets.

Lisa began her's right away, and within minutes, she was finished.

Amelia, meanwhile, struggled to even cut the string.

"Lisa, you're a natural! Why don't you help the other girls?"

Lisa smiled at the councilor and turned to the brunette beside her to help the girl create her Dream Catcher.

* * *

THAT NIGHT…

Amelia didn't dare sleep knowing that the Dream Catcher was waiting for her in her dreams. Therefore, she laid in her bunk, watching every shadow that dared to move.

Amelia waited for Lisa to whimper before sitting up and shaking the girl awake.

Lisa's eyes shot open. "What? Amelia?"

"Are you okay? You were crying in your sleep."

Lisa explained her nightmare to Amelia, and Amelia rattled off a description on the nightmare she'd had about the Dream Catcher (she hadn't slept, so she hadn't had it this time, but she'd had it the past few times she'd lived through this).

"What do we do?" Amelia asked.

Lisa smiled and climbed down the ladder to sit beside Amelia on her bunk.

"My mom never let's me stay up all night."

* * *

The sun filtered through the window, shining upon an exhausted Amelia and a yawning Lisa.

"You don't look so good," Amelia laughed.

"You, either," Lisa chuckled.

"How long do you two think you can go without sleeping?" Meg asked in a mocking tone. "Maybe I should tell Justine."

"No!" the two girls exclaimed.

Before any of the girls could continue, the door burst open, and Justine walked in.

"Fun day ahead, girls!" she called. "Twenty mile canoe trip!"

Amelia and Lisa groaned, quietly.

"Hey, Justine," Meg said. "Did you know that Lisa and Amelia…"

The other girls flinched in anticipation, even though Amelia already knew what would happen.

"-want to be first boat?" Meg finished.

Justine looked both surprised and delighted.

"All right. Up you get then! You two can lead the way," Justine said before yelling instructions to the other girls.

Amelia stood and exited the cabin after Meg and a few other campers. Lisa followed about fifteen seconds later.

* * *

That night, all of the cabins sat around the camp fire, singing camp fire sings and having a good time, but Lisa and Amelia felt ready to pass out or get sick. Or both.

"Just one more?" a girl with brown hair in pigtails begged as Justine finished the camp fire song.

"Yeah, Justine!" Meg called, watching Lisa sigh and lean her head on Amelia's shoulder. "Just one more."

"It's nice to see you getting into the spirit of things, Meg," Justine smiled. "I know."

She strummed a cord on the guitar.

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider!_

"Come on, guys," she interrupted herself. "You have to sing!"

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider_

 _That wiggled and wiggled and tickled inside her_

 _She swallowed a spider to catch the fly_

 _I don't know why she swallowed a fly_

 _Perhaps she'll die_

Lisa suddenly screamed, causing Amelia to jump (despite expecting it), and Justine ran over to the new camper, who had falling asleep sitting up.

"Lisa! Wake up!" Justine yelled as she shook Lisa's shoulders. "Go get help," she told another girl.

Lisa mumbled as she opened her eyes, and she raised her fingers to her lips and tugged on the object.

"Is that a spider web?" one girl asked as Lisa pulled out a silky strand.

"How did she get it in her mouth?" another muttered.

"Lisa, you fell asleep sitting up," Justine explained.

"He was in my nightmare," Lisa murmured.

"Enough. There is no such thing as the boogeyman," Justine stated, firmly. "That's it; no more scary stories. Everyone, go to bed. Get your stuff."

The crowd dispersed, and Amelia put a hand on Lisa's shoulder.

"It's okay," Amelia said, although she wasn't sure who she was trying to convince: Lisa or herself.

"Amelia, he was in my nightmare. Things from the nightmare are actually happening," Lisa stammered, fear coloring her voice, as she ripped up her sleeve to display the claw marks.

"I don't want to listen to this all night," Meg snapped. "I'm sleeping in the Mess hall."

"Wait," Amelia cried. "Meg… do you want to stay up with us all night?"

Meg blinked. "Really?"

"Really?" Lisa repeated.

Amelia nodded. "Really."

Meg blinked again. "Sure."

* * *

"I packed the soda," Lisa murmured, careful not to wake the others.

"My mom packed a ton of chocolate," Amelia added.

Amelia took a sip of her soda and nearly did a spit take.

"Just chug it, okay?" Lisa suggested before the two girls downed as much soda as they could before coughing and laughing.

Meg sat beside them, not speaking, as she sipped her own soda.

* * *

Amelia didn't dare leave Lisa and Meg this time. She sat on the bunk and ignored her aching bladder.

Amelia and Lisa rocked back and forth. Two sleepless nights and the sleep deprivation was taking its toll on them. Meg sat beside them. Even she was beginning to look nervous, despite not believing in the Dream Catcher (yet).

"I'm going to go use the bathroom," Meg said, standing and leaving the cabin with a flashlight.

Amelia was so tired. Everything felt heavy: her limbs, her eyelids, her head.

She couldn't sleep, though! She coul…d…n't…

Amelia's thought slowed as her eyes closed against her will.

* * *

Amelia's eyes shot open seconds later to see the Dream Catcher kneeling over Lisa's sleeping form, breathing in a silvery light.

Amelia screamed and sprinted out the door and into the woods.

She had to find Lisa. Where was Meg?

"Amelia!" Lisa shouted from the cave and Amelia sprinted towards it.

"Amelia!"

Meg?

"Amelia, wake up!"

Amelia shot up in her bed, her body soaked in sweat, and she nearly konked heads with Meg.

"What?" Amelia muttered. "What happened?"

"I was so tired, I started getting dizzy, so I sat down by the bathroom and fell asleep. I woke up because I heard you screaming all the way down there," Meg replied. "What's going on?"

"The Dream Catcher has Lisa," Amelia replied. "You woke me up before I could save her. We have to get her."

Meg hesitated.

"Meg, please," Amelia begged.

Meg sighed. "Fine. Let's go."

Maybe it would've been better if Amelia left Meg in the cabin.

* * *

Amelia ran for the woods, where she knew Lisa would be in the cave, and Meg followed.

"Amelia!" Lisa's voice screamed, and Amelia followed it.

Amelia and Meg dashed into the cave, tripping over the spider Web before they found Lisa.

"Come on," she ordered, not wasting any time.

The inevitable occurred. Lisa's foot got stuck.

Amelia tugged on Lisa's leg, but that only resulted in both girls losing their balance, bringing Meg with them.

The Dream Catcher appeared and lumbered closer.

The girls screamed at the top of their lungs, and their shouts were interrupted by…

Beep, beep, beep.

"The alarm!" Lisa shouted.

It cursed.

"Thank goodness. We can wake up!" Meg yelled.

Lisa laughed. "Yes!"

"Wait!" Amelia yelled. "Meg can't wake up! You fell asleep by the bathroom, remember?"

Meg's eyes widened, and she sobbed in horror and realization.

Amelia and Lisa vanished, but not before Amelia heard Meg let loose one more awful scream.

* * *

Amelia sat up in her own bed in her own house.

June 10th. Again.

* * *

Amelia sat on the bus, still feeling sluggish and disoriented after what happened. Just like the last time. And the time before that. And the time before that.

Lisa walked onto the bus, and Amelia gestured for Lisa to sit beside her, but Lisa chose the next seat over.

Meg sat beside Amelia.

"I can't believe we got shipped off to Camp Lame-o again," Meg complained.

"It's actually kind of fun," Amelia told her.

Meg rolled her eyes. "Are you kidding me?"

"Why are you even here?"

"My parents have to work," Meg spat, bitterly. "Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if we didn't have to deal with the lame new kids."

"I like meeting the new campers," Amelia disagreed. " _They_ seem nice."

Amelia stood and maneuvered around Meg to sit beside Lisa.

"I'm Amelia," the said girl grinned.

"Lisa," the new camper smiled, shaking Amelia's hand.

Amelia didn't notice Meg's hurt expression, which was quickly concealed by a haughty look and the uncaring roll of her eyes.

Looking at Meg with her mask in place, you'd never know.

* * *

Justine pointed to each kid and listed off a cabin.

"We're both crickets!" Amelia exclaimed to Lisa before Meg appeared behind her. "Oh, you, too," Amelia said, some excitement going out of her.

* * *

"Pick a bunk!" Justine announced, gesturing to the room with her arms, and girls shoved past her in order to get a bunk first.

Amelia set her bags on a bunk, but when she looked up, she saw Lisa prepare to set her bags on the bunk beside Amelia's before Meg appeared seemingly out of no where and sat on the bunk.

"Sorry, already taken," Meg said.

Lisa rolled her eyes before placing her bags on the top bunk.

* * *

"One the first day of camp, we make… these," Justine declared, presenting a ring with strings filling the middle, criss crossing each other; a small bead was tied into the center.

"They kind of look like spider webs!" Lisa exclaimed.

"They're dream catchers," Amelia told the new camper.

"Yes," Justine confirmed. "They're called dream catchers because they catch all of your bad dreams, so when you wake up in the morning, all of your bad dreams have disappeared," Justine explained in a voice that was meant to make this less-than-interesting activity seem more exciting.

"After you've woven the string around, you're going the add the bead," Justine instructed. "The bead is, of course, the _spider_."

"This is so lame," Meg muttered.

Justine gave her an annoyed look before masking it with a bright grin.

"Get started!" she told her crickets.

Lisa began her's right away, and within minutes, she was finished.

Amelia, meanwhile, struggled to even cut the string.

"Lisa, you're a natural! Why don't you help the other girls?"

Lisa smiled at the councilor and turned to the brunette beside her to help the girl create her Dream Catcher.

* * *

THAT NIGHT…

Amelia didn't dare sleep knowing that the Dream Catcher was waiting for her in her dreams. Therefore, she laid in her bunk, watching every shadow that dared to move.

Amelia waited for Lisa to whimper before sitting up and shaking the girl awake.

Lisa's eyes shot open. "What? Amelia?"

"Are you okay? You were crying in your sleep."

Lisa explained her nightmare to Amelia, and Amelia rattled off a description on the nightmare she'd had about the Dream Catcher (she hadn't slept, so she hadn't had it this time, but she'd had it the past several times she'd lived through this).

"What do we do?" Amelia asked.

Lisa smiled and climbed down the ladder to sit beside Amelia on her bunk.

"My mom never let's me stay up all night."

* * *

The sun filtered through the window, shining upon an exhausted Amelia and a yawning Lisa.

"You don't look so good," Amelia laughed.

"You, either," Lisa chuckled.

"How long do you two think you can go without sleeping?" Meg asked in a mocking tone. "Maybe I should tell Justine."

"No!" the two girls exclaimed.

Before any of the girls could continue, the door burst open, and Justine walked in.

"Fun day ahead, girls!" she called. "Twenty mile canoe trip!"

Amelia and Lisa groaned, quietly.

"Hey, Justine," Meg said. "Did you know that Lisa and Amelia…"

The other girls flinched in anticipation, even though Amelia already knew what would happen.

"-want to be first boat?" Meg finished.

Justine looked both surprised and delighted.

"All right. Up you get then! You two can lead the way," Justine said before yelling instructions to the other girls.

Amelia stood and exited the cabin after Meg and a few other campers. Lisa followed about fifteen seconds later.

* * *

That night, all of the cabins sat around the camp fire, singing camp fire sings and having a good time, but Lisa and Amelia felt ready to pass out or get sick. Or both.

"Just one more?" a girl with brown hair in pigtails begged as Justine finished the camp fire song.

"Yeah, Justine!" Meg called, watching Lisa sigh and lean her head on Amelia's shoulder. "Just one more."

"It's nice to see you getting into the spirit of things, Meg," Justine smiled. "I know."

She strummed a cord on the guitar.

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider!_

"Come on, guys," she interrupted herself. "You have to sing!"

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider_

 _That wiggled and wiggled and tickled inside her_

 _Swallowed a spider to catch the fly_

 _I don't know why she swallowed a fly_

 _Perhaps she'll die_

Lisa suddenly screamed, causing Amelia to jump (despite expecting it), and Justine ran over to the new camper, who had falling asleep sitting up.

"Lisa! Wake up!" Justine yelled as she shook Lisa's shoulders. "Go get help," she told another girl.

Lisa mumbled as she opened her eyes, and she raised her fingers to her lips and tugged on the object.

"Is that a spider web?" one girl asked as Lisa pulled out a silky strand.

"How did she get it in her mouth?" another muttered.

"Lisa, you fell asleep sitting up," Justine explained.

"He was in my nightmare," Lisa murmured.

"Enough. There is no such thing as the boogeyman," Justine stated, firmly. "That's it; no more scary stories. Everyone, go to bed. Get your stuff."

The crowd dispersed, and Amelia put a hand on Lisa's shoulder.

"It's okay," Amelia said, although she wasn't sure who she was trying to convince: Lisa or herself.

"Amelia, he was in my nightmare. Things from the nightmare are actually happening," Lisa stammered, fear coloring her voice, as she ripped up her sleeve to display the claw marks.

"I don't want to listen to this all night," Meg snapped. "I'm sleeping in the Mess hall."

"Wait," Amelia cried. "Meg… do you want to stay up with us all night?"

Meg blinked. "Really?"

"Really?" Lisa repeated.

Amelia nodded. "Really."

Meg blinked again. "Sure."

* * *

"I packed the soda," Lisa murmured, careful not to wake the others.

"My mom packed a ton of chocolate," Amelia added.

Amelia took a sip of her soda and nearly did a spit take.

"Just chug it, okay?" Lisa suggested before the two girls downed as much soda as they could before coughing and laughing.

Meg sat beside them, not speaking, as she sipped her own soda.

* * *

Amelia didn't dare leave Lisa and Meg this time. She sat on the bunk and ignored her aching bladder.

Amelia and Lisa rocked back and forth. Two sleepless nights and the sleep deprivation was taking its toll on them. Meg sat beside them. Even she was beginning to look nervous, despite not believing in the Dream Catcher (yet).

"I'm going to go use the bathroom," Lisa said, standing and leaving the cabin with a flashlight.

Amelia was so tired. Everything felt heavy: her limbs, her eyelids, her head.

She couldn't sleep, though! She coul…d…n't…

Amelia's thought slowed as her eyes closed against her will.

* * *

Amelia's eyes shot open seconds later to see the Dream Catcher kneeling over Meg's sleeping form, breathing in a silvery light.

Amelia screamed and sprinted out the door and into the woods.

She had to find Meg. Where was Lisa?

"Amelia!" Meg shouted from the cave and Amelia sprinted towards it.

"Amelia!"

Lisa?

"Amelia, wake up!"

Amelia shot up in her bed, her body soaked in sweat, and she nearly konked heads with Lisa.

"What?" Amelia muttered. "What happened?"

"I was so tired, I started getting dizzy, so I sat down by the bathroom and fell asleep. I woke up because I heard you screaming all the way down there," Lisa replied. "What's going on?"

"The Dream Catcher has Meg," Amelia replied. "You woke me up before I could save her. We have to get her."

Lisa rolled her eyes. "What? Meg has been nothing but cruel to us. Maybe we should let her get herself out."

"Lisa, please," Amelia begged. "Meg is mean, but she would never leave us to die. Therefore, we shouldn't leave her."

Lisa sighed. "Fine. Let's go."

* * *

Amelia ran for the woods, where she knew Meg would be in the cave, and Lisa followed.

"Amelia!" Meg's voice screamed, and Amelia followed it.

Amelia and Lisa dashed into the cave, tripping over the spider Web before they found Meg.

"Come on," she ordered, not wasting any time.

The inevitable occurred. Meg's foot got stuck.

Amelia tugged on Meg's leg, but that only resulted in both girls losing their balance, bringing Lisa with them.

The Dream Catcher appeared and lumbered closer.

The girls screamed at the top of their lungs, and their shouts were interrupted by…

Beep, beep, beep.

"The alarm!" Lisa shouted.

It cursed.

"Thank goodness. We can wake up!" Meg yelled.

Lisa laughed. "Yes!"

"Wait!" Amelia yelled as she realized something. "Meg and I can't wake up! Lisa, you fell asleep by the bathroom, remember?"

Meg's eyes widened, and she sobbed in horror and realization.

Lisa vanished, and the Dream Catcher approached.

Now, Amelia would die alongside Meg.

Meg let loose one last awful scream, and the world spun around Amelia before fading entirely.

* * *

Amelia sat bolt up right in her bed.

Two more chances.

What was she going to do?

* * *

Amelia sat on the bus, still feeling sluggish and disoriented after what happened. Just like the last time. And the time before that. And the time before that.

Lisa walked onto the bus, and Amelia gestured for Lisa to sit beside her, but Lisa chose the next seat over.

Meg sat beside Amelia.

"I can't believe we got shipped off to Camp Lame-o again," Meg complained.

"It's actually kind of fun," Amelia told her.

Meg rolled her eyes. "Are you kidding me?"

"Why are you even here?"

"My parents have to work," Meg spat, bitterly. "Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if we didn't have to deal with the lame new kids."

"I like meeting the new campers," Amelia disagreed. " _They_ seem nice."

Amelia stood and maneuvered around Meg to sit beside Lisa.

"I'm Amelia," the said girl grinned.

"Lisa," the new camper smiled, shaking Amelia's hand.

Amelia didn't notice Meg's hurt expression, which was quickly concealed by a haughty look and the uncaring roll of her eyes.

Looking at Meg with her mask in place, you'd never know.

* * *

Justine pointed to each kid and listed off a cabin.

"We're both crickets!" Amelia exclaimed to Lisa before Meg appeared behind her. "Oh, you, too," Amelia said, some excitement going out of her.

* * *

"Pick a bunk!" Justine announced, gesturing to the room with her arms, and girls shoved past her in order to get a bunk first.

Amelia set her bags on a bunk, but when she looked up, she saw Lisa prepare to set her bags on the bunk beside Amelia's before Meg appeared seemingly out of no where and sat on the bunk.

"Sorry, already taken," Meg said.

Lisa rolled her eyes before placing her bags on the top bunk.

* * *

Amelia walked along the sidewalk towards the Mess Hall for lunch.

"You little bitch!"

Amelia stopped short. What? That was Lisa's voice, but Amelia had never heard Lisa talk that way.

Amelia ducked around the corner and saw Lisa punch Meg in the stomach, who sputtered.

Amelia froze. No way.

"You're always so rude," Lisa sneered. "Such a little slut, always begging for sex."

She punched Meg again, and Meg fell to her knees, which only gave Lisa the opportunity to kick her between the legs.

"I know you're in love with Amelia," Lisa growled. "Admit it."

"I am," Meg replied, gasping in pain. "Please don't tell her."

"On one condition," Lisa replied.

"What?"

"You don't tell Amelia about any of this. _Any_ of it. Understand?"

Meg nodded.

"Besides, even if I did tell her, she'd never go for a slut like you."

Amelia blinked before smiling in realization. She knew how to break the time loop.

* * *

"One the first day of camp, we make… these," Justine declared, presenting a ring with strings filling the middle, criss crossing each other; a small bead was tied into the center.

"They kind of look like spider webs!" Lisa exclaimed.

"They're dream catchers," Amelia told the new camper.

She had to play this smart. She had to wait for her last attempt, and she couldn't let Lisa know that she knew what was going on.

"Yes," Justine confirmed. "They're called dream catchers because they catch all of your bad dreams, so when you wake up in the morning, all of your bad dreams have disappeared," Justine explained in a voice that was meant to make this less-than-interesting activity seem more exciting.

"After you've woven the string around, you're going the add the bead," Justine instructed. "The bead is, of course, the spider."

"This is so lame," Meg muttered.

Justine gave her an annoyed look before masking it with a bright grin.

"Get started!" she told her crickets.

Lisa began her's right away, and within minutes, she was finished.

Amelia, meanwhile, struggled to even cut the string.

"Lisa, you're a natural! Why don't you help the other girls?"

Lisa smiled at the councilor and turned to the brunette beside her to help the girl create her Dream Catcher.

* * *

Amelia peered into the cabin through an open doorway, and her eyes widened when she saw Lisa take a pair of scissors and cut the Dream Catchers of Amelia, Meg, and her own.

No wonder they'd been cut, even when Amelia made sure Tyler and Meg didn't leave the Mess Hall. They hadn't been doing it, and neither had the Dream Catcher.

Lisa had. That old saying is true.

Things are not always as they seem.

* * *

THAT NIGHT…

Amelia kept her eyes open until she heard a rustle of bed sheets, and she rolled over, making sure to be slow and quiet and discreet.

Lisa crawled out of her bunk and stood beside Meg.

"Remember, Meg," Lisa murmured, "don't tell Amelia."

Lisa covered Meg's mouth as she inserted a twelve inch strap into Meg.

Meg whimpered.

"Lisa, please," she murmured through Lisa's hand.

"Please what? Please fuck me?" Lisa mocked as she thrust into Meg.

"No… please stop."

As much as Amelia wanted to rip Lisa's head off, she didn't interfere. Not this time. She had to know everything that Lisa did to Meg. On her final chance, she would fix it.

She _had_ to fix it.

* * *

Amelia didn't sleep after watching Lisa rape Meg, and Lisa didn't sleep much either. Amelia heard Lisa whimper in her sleep as nightmares engulfed her.

* * *

The following night, all of the cabins sat around the camp fire, singing camp fire sings and having a good time, but Lisa and Amelia felt ready to pass out or get sick. Or both, considering neither had slept. Meg hadn't either, but she looked way better than Amelia and Lisa. Probably because she had more to worry about than sleep deprivation.

"Just one more?" a girl with brown hair in pigtails begged as Justine finished the camp fire song.

"Yeah, Justine!" Meg called, watching Lisa sigh and lean her head on Amelia's shoulder. It took all of Amelia's willpower not to shove Lisa into the camp fire. "Just one more."

"It's nice to see you getting into the spirit of things, Meg," Justine smiled. "I know."

She strummed a cord on the guitar.

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider!_

"Come on, guys," she interrupted herself. "You have to sing!"

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider_

 _That wiggled and wiggled and tickled inside her_

 _She swallowed a spider to catch the fly_

 _I don't know why she swallowed a fly_

 _Perhaps she'll die_

Lisa suddenly screamed, causing Amelia to jump (despite expecting it), and Justine ran over to the new camper, who had falling asleep sitting up.

"Lisa! Wake up!" Justine yelled as she shook Lisa's shoulders. "Go get help," she told another girl.

Lisa mumbled as she opened her eyes, and she raised her fingers to her lips and tugged on the object.

"Is that a spider web?" one girl asked as Lisa pulled out a silky strand.

"How did she get it in her mouth?" another muttered.

"Lisa, you fell asleep sitting up," Justine explained.

"He was in my nightmare," Lisa murmured.

"Enough. There is no such thing as the boogeyman," Justine stated, firmly. "That's it; no more scary stories. Everyone, go to bed. Get your stuff."

The crowd dispersed, and Amelia put a hand on Lisa's shoulder.

"It's okay," Amelia said, although she wanted to punch Lisa, like Lisa punched Meg.

"Amelia, he was in my nightmare. Things from the nightmare are actually happening," Lisa stammered, fear coloring her voice, as she ripped up her sleeve to display the claw marks.

"I don't want to listen to this all night," Meg snapped. "I'm sleeping in the Mess hall."

Amelia and Lisa watched her go, and Amelia glared at Lisa with all her strength, thinking of the pain Meg must've been experiencing.

No wonder Meg had been so mean. Amelia was hanging out with her abuser.

Things are not always as they seem. Amelia had learned that the hard way.

* * *

"I packed the soda," Lisa murmured, careful not to wake the others.

"My mom packed a ton of chocolate," Amelia added.

Amelia took a sip of her soda and nearly did a spit take.

"Just chug it, okay?" Lisa suggested before the two girls downed as much soda as they could before coughing and laughing.

* * *

Amelia and Lisa both had their knees pulled to their chests, rocking back and forth with wild eyes.

"I feel like my hair's standing on end," Amelia murmured.

"Me, too," Lisa whispered. "And I have to go to the bathroom."

"I'll be right here when you get back," Amelia pointed out.

Lisa hesitated. "All right."

She stood and watched as Amelia scampered back against the wall, watching the entire room for any sign of a threat.

Lisa grabbed her flashlight and switched it on; she made it to the door before turning back to Amelia.

"Don't go to sleep, okay?" Lisa told her.

"I'm way too wired to even _think_ about sleeping," Amelia scoffed.

Lisa nodded and stumbled around in the darkness, looking over her shoulder and searching every corner, as she approached the bathroom.

She pushed open the door to the ladies room and watched as the light flickered to life, turning on and off several times before finally staying on.

* * *

Amelia lied down in her sleeping bag and tried to keep her eyes pried open.

They zeroed in on Meg's broken Dream Catcher.

She would save Meg. She promised that (silently) to Meg, herself, and the man up above.

By the time Amelia realized her eye lids were closing, she was already sleep.

* * *

Amelia opened her eyes and found herself sitting in the silky, sticky spider Web. She could hear the skittling of spider legs nearby, and she froze up with fear. She couldn't move, and he was nearby. She'd never make it out of here.

"Lisa!" she screamed. "Meg!"

It seemed like years before Lisa appeared at her side.

"Lisa!" she cried.

Lisa hugged her before grabbing Amelia's hand.

"Let's get out of here!" Lisa hissed.

Amelia stumbled to her feet, but when she tried to take a step, she couldn't.

"I'm stuck!" she exclaimed, panic lacing her voice.

Suddenly, Lisa couldn't move her feet either, and when she tried, she became unbalanced and fell to the spider web. Lisa tried to get up, but her entire body was now glued to the web.

Amelia kneeled over to try and help her, but she stumbled and fell. Now, they were both stuck to the spider webs.

Meg appeared.

"Meg!" Amelia yelled.

"Meg, help us!" Lisa sobbed.

Meg stared at Lisa in hatred, but Meg glanced at Amelia in sympathy. Amelia realized that Meg hadn't really been about to leave her there. Lisa, probably. Amelia? It was just a joke made by a scared, bitter girl.

Meg grabbed the flashlight. "I'm an only child," she explained. "I don't like sharing."

Meg went to take a step, but the spider webs had captured the soles of her shoes, and she fell to land beside the other girls.

The Dream Catcher appeared and lumbered closer.

The girls screamed at the top of their lungs, and their shouts were interrupted by…

Beep, beep, beep.

"The alarm!" Lisa shouted.

It cursed.

"Thank goodness. We can wake up!" Meg yelled.

Amelia gulped before yelling, "Not you! Remember? You didn't want to be woken up. You're still dreaming!"

Amelia and Lisa vanished, but not before Amelia heard Meg let loose one more awful scream.

* * *

Amelia shot up in her own bed.

Her final chance had arrived.

* * *

Amelia sat on the bus, watching for Meg.

Lisa walked onto the bus and sat in the seat across from Amelia. This time, Amelia didn't beckon her over.

Meg arrived and sat beside Amelia on the bus.

Amelia didn't waste a single second before pressing her lips against Meg's.

Meg's eyes widened as Amelia pulled away.

"What was that?" she asked, touching her lips lightly.

Amelia laughed. "A kiss."

"Well, I know _that_ , but why?"

"Meg," Amelia sighed. "I love you. I have for a long time, and when we grew apart, it broke my heart. I couldn't keep going on acting like everything was okay."

Meg stared at her for a second before leaning forward and giving Amelia a kiss.

"I love you, too," she whispered against Amelia's lips.

That one event changed the course of history…

Along with many other events Amelia might have caused.

* * *

Justine pointed to each kid and listed off a cabin.

"We're both crickets!" Amelia exclaimed to Meg before Lisa appeared behind them.

"Hey, Lisa, right?" Amelia said to the new camper.

Lisa nodded.

"I'm Amelia and this is Meg."

"Nice to meet you," Lisa replied.

Amelia smiled, but as soon as she turned around, she smirked. _You'll be withdrawing that statement soon enough,_ she thought.

* * *

"Pick a bunk!" Justine announced, gesturing to the room with her arms, and girls shoved past her in order to get a bunk first.

Amelia set her bags on a bunk, but when she looked up, she saw Lisa prepare to set her bags on the bunk beside Amelia's before Meg appeared seemingly out of no where and sat on the bunk.

"Sorry, already taken," Meg said.

Lisa rolled her eyes before placing her bags on the top bunk.

Amelia smiled at Meg and kissed her on the cheek.

"You don't really need your own bunk," she pointed out with a suggestive tone.

Meg smiled. "I suppose I don't."

* * *

"On the first day of camp, we make… these," Justine declared, presenting a ring with strings filling the middle, criss crossing each other; a small bead was tied into the center.

"They kind of look like spider webs!" Lisa exclaimed.

"They're dream catchers," Amelia told the new camper.

"Yes," Justine confirmed. "They're called dream catchers because they catch all of your bad dreams, so when you wake up in the morning, all of your bad dreams have disappeared," Justine explained in a voice that was meant to make this less-than-interesting activity seem more exciting.

"After you've woven the string around, you're going the add the bead," Justine instructed. "The bead is, of course, the _spider_."

Lisa had already started, and Meg was untangling some string for her own.

"Get started!" Justine told her crickets.

Lisa finished her's within minutes, and Meg and Amelia worked together to create their own.

"Lisa, you're a natural! Why don't you help the other girls?"

Lisa smiled at the councilor and turned to the brunette beside her to help the girl create her Dream Catcher.

* * *

Lisa cut the Dream Catchers later that day, and Amelia made sure that Meg slept in her bunk. Amelia slept closer to Lisa while Meg slept against the wall, and Amelia shielded her.

* * *

The next night, all of the cabins sat around the camp fire, singing camp fire sings and having a good time, but Lisa felt ready to pass out or get sick. Or both.

"Just one more?" a girl with brown hair in pigtails begged as Justine finished the camp fire song.

"Yeah, Justine!" Meg called, not wanting this moment with her girlfriend to end. "Just one more."

"It's nice to see you getting into the spirit of things, Meg," Justine smiled. "I know."

She strummed a cord on the guitar.

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider!_

"Come on, guys," she interrupted herself. "You have to sing!"

 _There was an old lady who swallowed a spider_

 _That wiggled and wiggled and tickled inside her_

 _She swallowed a spider to catch the fly_

 _I don't know why she swallowed a fly_

 _Perhaps she'll die_

Lisa suddenly screamed, causing Amelia to jump, and Justine ran over to the new camper, who had fallen asleep sitting up.

"Lisa! Wake up!" Justine yelled as she shook Lisa's shoulders. "Go get help," she told another girl.

Lisa mumbled as she opened her eyes, and she raised her fingers to her lips and tugged on the object.

"Is that a spider web?" one girl asked as Lisa pulled out a silky strand.

"How did she get it in her mouth?" another muttered.

"Lisa, you fell asleep sitting up," Justine explained.

"He was in my nightmare," Lisa murmured.

"Enough. There is no such thing as the boogeyman," Justine stated, firmly. "That's it; no more scary stories. Everyone, go to bed. Get your stuff."

The crowd dispersed, and Amelia put a hand on Lisa's shoulder.

"It's okay," Amelia said, although she was thinking: it will be for me and Meg. It won't be for you.

"Amelia, he was in my nightmare. Things from the nightmare are actually happening," Lisa stammered, fear coloring her voice, as she ripped up her sleeve to display the claw marks.

"Well, I would like to get some sleep," Meg said. "Amelia, would you mind if I slept in the Mess Hall?"

Amelia giggled. "Meg, you don't need my permission. Goodnight."

After giving Amelia a kiss, Meg walked off to the mess hall.

"Amelia, if we sleep, he can hurt us," Lisa said, voice quivering. "I'm setting an alarm. We can't go to sleep!"

Amelia only nodded. Her plan had begun.

* * *

"I packed the soda," Lisa murmured, careful not to wake the others.

"My mom packed a ton of chocolate," Amelia added.

Amelia grabbed Lisa's soda when Lisa wasn't looking, and when Lisa looked back, her soda was where it was before she turned her back. Amelia's plan was about to really start rolling.

Revenge is sweet, isn't it?

Anyway, Amelia took a sip of her soda and nearly did a spit take.

"Just chug it, okay?" Lisa suggested before the two girls downed as much soda as they could before coughing and laughing.

Meanwhile, Meg was unrolling her sleeping bag in the Mess Hall.

* * *

Amelia closed her eyes and willingly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Amelia found herself in the Dream Catcher's lair, and she screamed for Meg and Lisa, so that they would hear her and come find her.

The two girls whirled around the corner sometime later, and Meg tugged on Amelia's boots, which were stuck to the spider web, but they refused to come loose.

Meg and Amelia unbalanced and fell to the spider web, Amelia grabbing Lisa's arm on the way down and 'accidently' bringing her down with them.

The Dream Catcher appeared and lumbered closer.

The girls screamed at the top of their lungs (just because Amelia knew her and Meg would escape didn't make this any less terrifying), and their shouts were interrupted by…

Beep, beep, beep.

"The alarm!" Lisa shouted.

It cursed.

"Thank goodness. We can wake up!" Meg yelled.

Lisa shouted, "Not you! Remember? You fell asleep in the Mess Hall!"

"No!" Amelia yelled to Lisa. "You did!"

Unbeknownst to Lisa and Meg, Amelia had slipped sleeping pills into Lisa's soda. When Lisa had konked out, Amelia had switched Lisa and Meg, placed Lisa in the Mess hall and a sleeping Meg in her bunk. Amelia had taken Lisa's watch.

That bitch would never hurt her girlfriend again.

"What?" Lisa screamed.

"Goodbye, Lisa!" Amelia cheered before grabbing Meg's hand and the two girls vanished.

* * *

Amelia smoothed down a crying Meg's hair when they woke up, and she whispered, "It's okay, Meg. It's over."

Amelia and Meg, exhausted mentally and physically, drifted back off to sleep, unafraid of slumber.

* * *

When Amelia woke up the following morning, it was not June 10th. It was June 14th, and the time loop was broken.

Amelia held Meg's hand in her own and thanked God for her girlfriend and Meg's second chance at life.

A few hours later, the dead body of Lisa Morgan was found in the Mess Hall.

* * *

 _It got pretty dark at the end there, I know._

 _They never mentioned Lisa's last name (or at least I didn't hear it), so I just made one up for her._

 _That was a very long one shot. Hope you enjoyed it. Make sure to leave a review._

 _So long, wonderful readers!_


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